India’s Social Development in a Decade of Reforms: 1990–91/1999–2000

The economic reforms initiated in India in 1991 have brought about visible upliftment of economic conditions of the country. This paper examines if the economic process is associated with an enhancement of India’s social development in equal measure in the reform decade of nineties. Ray (1989) considered thirteen social indicators of India and constructed the country’s social development index (SDI) as a certain weighted average of the selected indicators, for the years between 1950–51 and 1975–76. The present work broadly follows Ray (1989) in tracking the social development in the decade of economic reforms from 1990–91 to 1999–2000. The movement of SDI in nineties has been compared with the movements of India’s per capita income and plan expenditure on the social sector. The results show that though there has been growth in the social sector, it is not by far quite encouraging and perhaps more needs to be done in the social sector. The views expressed in the article are those of the author and not of the institution he serves.     

Education,Human Development and Quality of Life: Measurement Issues and Implications for India

This paper analyses and compares the measurement of indicators and variables in the construction of education index in Human Development Index (HDI) at the global, national and 18 sub-national human development reports in India since 1990. The results show non-comparability of measurement of the education indicators and variables. This implies that vertical and horizontal comparability of HDI may not be plausible for India. Implications of these analyses are highlighted for measurement of quality of life indices with special reference to physical quality of life index. Policy lessons are derived for future measurement of education index for India in particular, and other developing countries in general.

基于因子分析法的我国区域人类发展实证研究

本文介绍并引进了以因子分析法为基础构建的人类发展指数(HDI)。通过指标体系的构建、评估方法的选择及与联合国开发计划署制订的人类发展指数比较发现,基于因子分析法的人类发展指数较之传统的方法更适合测算与度量我国区域人类发展水平。     

Differences between Hispanic and non-Hispanic families in social capital and child development: First-year findings from an experimental study

Disadvantages faced by Hispanic children in the U.S., compared to non-Hispanic Whites, have been widely reported. Economic differences account for some of the gaps, but the social isolation of Hispanic families also serves as a barrier to children's success. Whereas Hispanic families tend to have strong kinship networks, their social ties often do not encompass the school and other authority systems. As a result, Hispanic families may have less access to social capital, that is, relations of trust and shared expectations that foster the flow of relevant information and support social norms that contribute to children's academic and social development. To study the role of social capital in child development, we embarked on a school-randomized trial in two cities with large Hispanic populations: San Antonio, Texas, and Phoenix, Arizona. In this paper, we report on first-year data from what will be a three-year longitudinal study, including 24 of an eventual 52 schools and about 1300 of what will be a sample of over 3000 children. We aimed to manipulate social capital through an intervention called Families and Schools Together (FAST), a multi-family after-school program that enhances relations among families, between parents and schools, and between parents and children through a sequence of structured activities over 8 weekly sessions. In the first year, 12 schools were randomly assigned to participate in FAST, and 12 served as controls. Data come from district administrative records, surveys of parents prior to FAST, and surveys of parents and teachers immediately after FAST. Surveys prior to FAST confirm that Hispanic parents have less extensive parent–school networks compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Comparisons of school means on post-FAST surveys indicate that parents in FAST schools experience more extensive social networks than those in control schools, but the differences are much more apparent in Phoenix than in San Antonio. Similarly, a pattern of better behavioral outcomes for children in FAST schools is evident in Phoenix but not San Antonio. Individual-level comparisons suggest that for some outcomes, effects may be larger for non-Hispanic Whites than for Hispanics, which would undermine potential contributions to reducing inequality.     

Young social milieus and multimodality: interrelations of travel behaviours and psychographic characteristics

ABSTRACT

In many countries of the global North, since the 2010s, there have been discussions about young adults turning away from the tendency exclusively to use cars and moving towards more multimodal behaviours, i.e. the flexible use of several transport modes. A more differentiated perspective on the young generation based on the sociostructural criteria of social milieus is presented in this paper with an empirically founded dataset from the city of Dortmund (Germany). Social milieus aim to reflect both horizontal and vertical differentiations and inequalities within society. Drawing on this assumption, multimodal travel behaviours and corresponding psychological assessments of transport modes are analysed with regard to three contrasting young social milieus: i. precariat, ii. middle class, and iii. cosmopolitan milieu. Based on our observations of the three social milieus, the prevailing conceptualisation of young adults as a supposedly ‘homogeneous group’ of key drivers towards a multimodal society must be negated: i) The precariat is exposed to socioeconomic restrictions and limited in its free mode choice. ii) The middle class demonstrates signs of a (conservative) reproduction of car-oriented behaviour patterns. iii) Only the cosmopolitan milieu indicates a less emotional attachment to the private car and favours ‘green’ multimodal behaviours instead.     

Connecting Knowledge and Policy: The Promise of Community Indicators in the United States

There are over 200 identified community based indicator projects in the United States. This paper reviews the factors that contribute to the success and failure of community indicator projects and discusses the types of desired outcomes that communities are trying to achieve. Both organizational and political factors contributing to the success of community indicators projects are discussed. Appendices include information on many of the community indicator projects in the United States. Advice for communities seeking to launch an indicator project are outlined.     

我国人力资本地区分布差异及其变化考探——基于不平等指数的度量与分解视角

本文运用基尼系数等不平等指数,考查了21世纪以来我国分地区的人力资本分布差异情况及其变化特征。结果表明,我国分地区的人力资本分布存在着较大的差异,其中东、中、西部地区间差距对总体差异的贡献率达到35%以上,而城乡间的差距贡献率一直都在75%以上;2005年之前我国人力资本的分布经历了一个分化的过程,2005年后尽管普及九年义务教育力度的提升在一定程度上平衡了乡村地区的人力资本分布,但城乡差距在总体差异中的贡献不但没有减小,反而还有所扩大。     

基于科学发展观的人类发展指标体系研究——以苏州市为例

科学发展观是统领我国社会经济发展的重要指导思想。而要将此重要理念付诸实施,贯彻落实到政府部门具体的行政工作中,建立科学的人类发展评价体系和正确的政府工作引导机制至关重要。本课题试图以苏州为例,以科学发展观为指导,通过对现有的人类发展指数及其相关指标的应用评估,提出新的基于科学发展的人类发展指标体系,并运用实际资料通过横向和纵向比较来评估新世纪以来苏州在人类发展中所取得的进展以及新的人类发展指标体系的应用状况。     

中国城乡弱相对贫困测算及时空演变：2012—2018

相对贫困的识别和测算是瞄准贫困人口和制定减贫政策的基础,但常用于识别相对贫困人口的比例收入法和测度相对贫困程度的FGT指数在理论基础、比例设定和贫困性质方面遭到质疑。采用基于社会融入成本理论的弱相对贫困人口识别方法,及与弱相对贫困线相适应的分层可加综合贫困指数,且考虑与现阶段我国绝对贫困线衔接性及国际标准的可比性,使用2012—2018年中国家庭追踪调查(CFPS)数据估计了中国城乡收入(消费)弱相对贫困线,并测算分析了中国城乡收入(消费)弱相对贫困程度及时空演变特征。研究表明,基于弱相对贫困线构造的综合贫困指数兼顾绝对贫困和相对贫困,可以避免传统FGT指数分别测度绝对贫困和相对贫困时动态变化趋势出现分歧的问题,可更为直观地综合评估经济增长和扶贫政策的减贫效应。无论城乡,尽管不平等导致相对贫困始终处于高位水平,但绝对贫困更大的下降幅度使得中国收入(消费)弱相对贫困程度仍呈稳健下降趋势。从社会融入成本角度出发,建议未来考虑住房成本和子女养育成本,分家庭类型进一步细化弱相对贫困标准。本研究有助于进一步分类瞄准弱相对贫困人口,监测弱相对贫困程度演变并综合评估减贫效应。     

Demographic pressure,economic development,and social engineering: An assessment of fertility declines in the second half of the twentieth century

Population Research and Policy Review - Concerns over the prospects of explosive demographic growth led to concerted efforts to engineer fertility reductions in the developing world, while skeptics...     

Thoughts on the nature of identity: how disorders of sex development inform clinical research about gender identity disorders

Disorders of sex development (DSD), like gender dysphoria, are conditions with major effects on child sexuality and identity, as well as sexual orientation. Each may in some cases lead to change of gender from that assigned neonatally. These similarities-and the conditions' differences-provide a context for reviewing the articles in this issue about clinical approaches to children with gender dysphoria, in relation to assessment, intervention, and ethics.     

中国老年人的生活自理能力状况与变化

本文利用2004年全国人口变动抽样调查数据对中国老年人的生活自理能力进行了分析,又与1994年老年人生活自理能力进行了对比。分析结果表明,2004年我国老年人中有8.9%生活不能自理,由此推算全国生活不能自理的老年人已经超过1200万人。分年龄、性别和城乡的老年人生活自理能力存在明显差别,年龄越大生活自理能力越差、女性不能自理比例高于男性、农村比城市差、中西部地区生活不能自理比例远高于东部地区。与1994年相比,中国老年人的生活自理能力总体上略有下降,需要进一步关注老年人的生活质量。     

空巢老人心理需求与老年社会服务发展探析——基于南京市鼓楼区的调查研究

计划生育政策的实施、劳动力人口的流动以及人们生活观念与方式的变化．家庭结构逐渐核心化和空巢化,空巢老人越来越多。为了预防空巢老人心理痰病,提高老年人适应能力和心理素质,我们对南京市鼓楼区独居空巢老人及其社区工作人员进行问卷调查和深入访谈,了解老人的心理需求和南京市老年社会服务发展现状,提出应逐步提高老年人生活质量,完善社会保障体系,构建社会服务支持网络,发展老年社会服务,实现者年人的积极老龄化、健康老龄化,促进社会协调发展。     

Indicators and Indices of Child Well-being: A Brief American History

This paper traces the history of indicators and indices of child well-being from its origins in the social indicator movement of the 1970s through recent developments in the field. Initial work calling for comprehensive sets of indicators of child well-being and later recommendations for indicator improvement are detailed. Products that resulted from these recommendations, such as comprehensive indicator reports and online resources are described. The development of child well-being indices is shown to parallel the history of indicators. The contributions of state and international indicator and index projects are included as well. Important aspects of child well-being indicator development are uncovered through documenting its history, including the need to focus on subjective as well as objective measures of well-being, and the need to develop indicators for the multiple ecological contexts of children’s lives, but to separate measures of context from measures of child outcomes. A rough consensus emerges across the history of indicator efforts on the critical domains of child well-being: physical, psychological, cognitive, social, and economic well-being. Recent recognition of the importance of indicators of positive development is noted. This paper was funded by the KIDS COUNT project of the Annie E. Casey Foundation.     

欠发达地区农村居民社会福利认知的影响因素研究——以贵州省为例

对贵州省684名农村成年居民的实证研究结果显示,农村居民在社会问题归因上的社会归因意识较为强烈,在政策优先意识上倾向于经济优先意识,其福利需求意识比较强烈但福利权利意识尚较为淡薄,这表明低水平实践的社会福利在当前欠发达地区的农村社会话语序列中尚未处于重要位置。经济发展水平、社会福利制度背景、文化传统和人口结构特征等不同层次因素对农村居民的社会福利认知均具有显著的影响。     

Leisure and quality of life in an international and multicultural context: what are major pathways linking leisure to quality of life?

This paper aims at advancing the conceptualization of leisure as a contributor to quality of life (QOL) in an international and multicultural context, based on an extensive and critical review of literature on leisure and QOL from a global, international perspective. Given the central role of culture in conceptualizing this notion, this paper gives attention to various cultural contexts world-wide. To illustrate the diversity of our societies, examples are introduced specifically from three culturally unique contexts in this paper – i.e., Asian, Middle-East, and Indigenous contexts. Also, some examples are drawn from other cultural groups in global and international contexts, particularly, in non-western contexts. Then, the final section of this paper aims at integrating and synthesizing the knowledge gained from this review to develop a tentative/working proposition about how leisure can contribute to QOL from international and cross-cultural perspectives. Specifically, based on such integration, this paper identifies and describes major pathways linking leisure to QOL. Overall, an overarching theme common to almost all cultural contexts examined appears to be the role of leisure-like activities as a context or space for creating meanings which then help to promote the quality of people’s lives. Major pathways or mechanisms that can facilitate meaning-making and life-quality-enhancement highlighted in this review include: (a) positive emotions and well-being experienced from leisure, (b) positive identities and self-esteem gained from leisure, (c) social and cultural connections and a harmony developed through leisure, and (d) leisure’s contribution to learning and human development across the life-span. Also, emphasized in this paper is the role of leisure as a context for realizing and utilizing human strengths and resilience. It is important, however, to stress that in people’s quest for a meaningful life, the benefits of meaning-making through leisure involve both “remedying the bad” and “enhancing the good,” as shown throughout this paper. Despite these benefits, we should not ignore that leisure experiences are socially and culturally constructed and shaped by the inequalities of society. Thus, the reality of power imbalance and inequalities should be acknowledged and appropriately addressed socially, culturally, and politically. Particularly, providing culturally relevant and meaningful leisure opportunities for less privileged population groups world-wide is clearly a top priority.     

Choosing fields in an expansionary era: Comparing two cohorts of baccalaureate degree-holders in the United States and Canada

In an era of expanding postsecondary markets and heightened student and institutional competition, students’ field of study decisions may be becoming an increasingly important point of differentiation in the process of social mobility. Drawing on the two most recent cohorts of the Baccalaureate and Beyond and National Graduates Surveys, this paper examines and compares field of study choices among American and Canadian baccalaureate degree-holders. Consistent with existing research, gender remains an important and consistent predictor of field of study choices. In Canada, the analyses show some evidence that the gender gap for business and management is shrinking, but the engineering and mathematics gap remains significant. In the U.S. the situation was reversed, as the engineering gap shrunk and the business and management gap did not change across cohorts. Moderate family background effects, strong and consistent academic ability effects and growing academic aspiration effects were found across most analyses, lending support to theories that predict family background has direct and indirect effects on higher education choices.